Stefan's POV

What would you do if you saw someone you've been longing to catch a glimpse of for days? How would you react? Wouldn't you be speechless at last having the opportunity and the chance to be reunited with that person? Well, I would too.

Every atom in my body sent out shock waves, as if someone had finally freed me from the agony of despair I'd felt for the past three years. Everything around me slowly faded away from my vision as I looked at her; my heart skipped a beat the moment she removed her sunglasses. I gasped when she revealed her eyes, still unaware of my presence.

I couldn't believe that the woman I had been longing to see, touch, and talk to for all this time had finally made her way back home. As I was regaining my composure to not freak her out, I could see from the corner of my eye that my brother was standing there with an infamous smirk on his face. I turned my attention back to her; she was talking to the brunette and then made her way towards us. Caroline went up and hugged Bonnie and Elena as if nothing had changed. They were all in tears and embraced each other like their lives depended on it. She was talking to them animatedly, and I could tell by the way their body language carried on that they were trying to console her, but she seemed pretty nonchalant about the whole situation.

I could see from here that she had grown up a lot since the last time I saw her; she was confident, which made her even more gorgeous. I couldn't move my legs forward; it was as if the ground had trapped them with its own heart. My face grew hotter at the mere sight of her; she truly was beautiful. She seemed like an angel with a halo around her head. I felt like a teenager approaching his crush for the first time. Nonetheless, I would speak to her this time. I had promised myself that I wouldn't let her slip away again; I wouldn't trap her within my grasp, but I wouldn't let her go either. I would earn my place back in her life, I would earn her trust, respect, and love. I would earn all those things that she had once reserved for me and me alone. With that thought, I began walking towards her.

Caroline was engaged in friendly banter with Damon, just like the old times; she didn't notice me coming towards her. I stood behind her, my chest pressed against her back. I could feel goosebumps rising on her skin, and I smiled inwardly, knowing I still had some effect on her.

She turned around slowly; each second felt like an eternity. Caroline was tormenting me, and she didn't even realize it. I just wanted a glimpse of her beautiful face, those silky blonde hair, her scent that feels like home. Everything about her is so peaceful; if she could, she would bring light into a lost nomad's life. She's the person who lights up my world like no one else can.

"Hey," she said in a small, calm voice. I couldn't make a single word out of my mouth. All these years of waiting, imagining how she'd look, how she'd smell, how she'd talk—only to have that familiar rush of tingles that told me I was finally home. In fact, she was the nomad who brought me back to life with her light.

"Hi," I finally said, breaking the silence. We stood there staring at each other as if our lives depended on this imaginary contest we were having with each other.

How are you?" she asked hesitantly, almost as if she was talking to a stranger. I felt a pang of hurt in my chest from her tone. Nonetheless, I'm not the victim here and I won't patronize her for that.

I'm good, Caroline. How are you? It's been a while," I said to her carefully, as I didn't want any awkwardness to surround us unnecessarily, because that was the last thing I wanted with her.

My question must have done something to her because she looked at me in a strange way. It's like she wanted to say something to me but couldn't because something was stopping her. I really wanted her to be open with me like before, but I can't complain about it; I'm the one to blame. I'm in the wrong here, and I have to fix it somehow, and I will.

She cleared her throat and said, "I'm fine. Yeah, it's been a long time. It was nice meeting you. Now, if you'll excuse me, I need to check on my mom."

She sauntered away before I could say anything; I guess she needed time.

The noise of a car crashing into a wall alerted me that my idiot of a best friend, Klaus, had arrived. I rolled my eyes and made my way towards him. Although he wasn't drunk, he was still a terrible driver; his future partner would be so lucky.

Klaus emerged from the car with a goofy grin, waving at me like a schoolgirl. He was lucky that he was my best friend; otherwise, his annoying, childish behavior would have ruined my entire day.

Klaus stumbled back onto his feet and went flying down with the brunette. For a moment, they stayed like that until something snapped within the girl and she got up, landing a sharp, stinging slap on Klaus's face. That just got interesting.

Klaus was in a trance and held his cheek; he looked like a child whose toy had just been taken away. It was time for me to step up and help my friend out, I guessed.

"Ladies and gentlemen, is there an issue here?" I asked the brunette. She turned to look at me and not going to lie, but that look scared the shit out of me. Such a wolfish resemblance. Wulf!

"This son of a bitch here threw me to the ground and then hovered over me," She said in a sneering tone.

"I apologize on behalf of my friend here, Mam, but he didn't do that intentionally. He is always clumsy and actually didn't notice you standing there. He stumbled back on his feet and fell to the ground with you". I said to her while Klaus is still standing there with a mouth wide open and his right hand caressing his cheek. I'm damn sure he swallowed some flies unknowingly in his stupid trance.

The girl looked at Klaus and then looked back at me before averting her gaze away while clearing her throat. "I'm sorry for cussing and hitting you, dude. Hope you didn't mind," she said to Klaus in a sultry voice. Klaus looked at her and finally closed his mouth and then cleared his throat and nodded his head.

"I'm Hayley, by the way. Caroline's best friend. Well, at least her college best friend since she seems to have high school ones down pat." She smiled.

"Hello, love. I'm Klaus. Caroline, I and Stefan went to the same school together. She is a lovely girl...or at least she was, as I would like to recall." Klaus said, and she visibly stiffened at the mention of my name. I had really screwed up, I guess.

"So you're Stefan?" she asked me skeptically.

"Yes! that's me". I said nervously.

Good luck trying to fix that," Hayley said in a menacing tone and then walked away, leaving me completely gobsmacked.

"

Fuck.